Taking the Long View: Panoramic Photographs, 1851-1991

Taking the Long View: Panoramic Photographs, 1851-1991: "
Since the early days of photography, the sweeping beauty of panoramic images have mesmerized us. Expansive vistas and sprawling cityscapes seem to be the perfect subjects for this long, narrow format. Sit back and enjoy this Library of Congress collection containing some 4,000 images taken from 1851 to 1991, featuring all 50 U.S. states and more than 20 countries. Start with a brief history of panoramic photography, and learn how they're shot, developed, and printed today. Because of their unique format, these photos can show changes in a city over time and uniquely chronicle disasters such as floods and earthquakes in great detail. The wonders of nature in Yosemite, Lake Tahoe, the Grand Canyon, and Mt. Rainier seem larger than life. While early 20th-century pictures of Naples, Seattle, Paris, Belize, Montgomery, and New York City offer a wide window to a bygone world.

The Panoramic Photograph Collection contains approximately four thousand images featuring American cityscapes, landscapes, and group portraits. These panoramas offer an overview of the nation, its enterprises and its interests, with a focus on the start of the twentieth century when the panoramic photo format was at the height of its popularity. Subject strengths include: agricultural life; beauty contests; disasters; engineering work such as bridges, canals and dams; fairs and expositions; military and naval activities, especially during World War I; the oil industry; schools and college campuses, sports, and transportation. The images date from 1851 to 1991 and depict scenes in all fifty states and the District of Columbia. More than twenty foreign countries and a few U.S. territories are also represented. These panoramas average between twenty-eight inches and six feet in length, with an average width of ten inches. "